Austin Public Library
Austin Public Library is a municipal public library system based in Austin (Travis County), Texas, serving a legal service area of 979,882 residents through 22 library buildings. Among profiled systems in Texas, it ranks first for total visits, first for operating spending, third for program attendance and third for electronic checkouts.
Among profiled systems serving 500,000 to 999,999 residents, it ranks seventh for the electronic share of checkouts and records the tenth-smallest decline in visits since FY 2019. Against the median system of its size class, it records 50% more operating spending per resident and 39% more visits per resident.
Austin against the 61 systems of its size class
Austin since FY 2019
Visits were 18% below the FY 2019 count of 3.6 million (size-class median: −30%). Physical checkouts moved 31% down over the same span.
- Visits
- Physical checkouts
Who comes to Austin programs
Programs for children up to age 11 drew 72% of all program attendance, and sessions averaged 30 people each.
Austin in numbers, FY 2024
- Visits
- 2,982,194
- Physical checkouts
- 3,893,002
- …of children's materials
- 2,184,237
- Electronic checkouts
- 3,857,204
- …of e-books
- 1,801,310
- …of e-audio
- 1,558,334
- Registered users
- 337,113
- Program sessions
- 5,819
- Program attendance
- 174,587
- Print volumes
- 918,779
- Audio items (physical)
- 20,394
- Video items (physical)
- 118,049
- Public computers
- 657
- Public service hours, all outlets
- 63,205
- Paid staff (full-time equivalent)
- 441.4
- Operating spending
- $70.1 million
- …on books and other materials
- $6.2 million
- Overdue fines on print items
- not charged
Where Austin gets its operating money
Operating revenue came to $72.6 million, or $74.13 per resident. The local-government share is close to the combined share for the 503 profiled systems in Texas. No federal operating revenue was reported.
- Local government
- State
- Federal
- Other (fines, fees, gifts, grants)
Austin, building by building
The 22 buildings cover 443,147 square feet in total, 0.45 square feet per resident against a median of 0.45 for the size class. The largest building is Austin Public Library at 200,000 square feet; the smallest is Howson Branch Library at 6,700. The longest hours are at Austin Public Library, 60.6 a week.
| Building | Type | Town | Hours a week | Floor area, sq ft |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Austin Public Library | Central library | Austin | 60.6 | 200,000 |
| Austin History Center Library | Branch | Austin | 34.8 | 36,176 |
| Carver Branch Library | Branch | Austin | 56 | 14,967 |
| Daniel E Ruiz Branch Library | Branch | Austin | 56 | 16,000 |
| Eustasio Cepeda Branch Library | Branch | Austin | 56 | 8,110 |
| Howson Branch Library | Branch | Austin | 56 | 6,700 |
| Little Walnut Creek Branch Library | Branch | Austin | 56 | 11,000 |
| Menchaca Road Branch Library | Branch | Austin | 56 | 14,500 |
| Milwood Branch Library | Branch | Austin | 56 | 8,266 |
| North Village Branch Library | Branch | Austin | 56 | 10,738 |
| Old Quarry Branch Library | Branch | Austin | 56 | 8,300 |
| Pleasant Hill Branch Library | Branch | Austin | 56 | 8,000 |
| Ralph W Yarborough Branch Library | Branch | Austin | 56 | 15,120 |
| Southeast Austin Community Branch Library | Branch | Austin | 56 | 8,320 |
| Spicewood Springs Branch Library | Branch | Austin | 56 | 13,257 |
| St. John Branch Library | Branch | Austin | 56 | 7,536 |
| Terrazas Branch Library | Branch | Austin | 56 | 10,827 |
| Twin Oaks Branch Library | Branch | Austin | 56 | 10,120 |
| University Hills Branch Library | Branch | Austin | 56 | 8,000 |
| Will Hampton at Oak Hill Branch Library | Branch | Austin | 56 | 8,580 |
| Willie Mae Kirk Branch Library | Branch | Austin | 56 | 10,000 |
| Windsor Park Branch Library | Branch | Austin | 56 | 8,630 |
Municipal libraries of similar size in other states
None of these six systems records more visits per resident than this one. The highest checkout rate in the group belongs to Omaha Public Library in Nebraska.
| System | Based in | Residents | Visits per resident | Checkouts per resident | Spending per resident |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Omaha Public Library | Omaha, NE | 571,013 | 2.31 | 4.97 | $36.23 |
| Mesa Public Library | Mesa, AZ | 524,892 | 1.24 | 3.04 | $16.78 |
| Long Beach Public Library | Long Beach, CA | 458,813 | 1.43 | 1.64 | $41.43 |
| Virginia Beach Public Library | Virginia Beach, VA | 458,028 | 1.99 | 3.20 | $46.01 |
| Oakland Public Library | Oakland, CA | 449,189 | 3.02 | 4.75 | $105.99 |
| Greensboro Public Library | Greensboro, NC | 435,509 | 2.50 | 2.53 | $25.49 |
Nearest in size within Texas
- Fort Bend County Libraries · Richmond · 873,816 residents
- Dallas Public Library · Dallas · 1,302,868 residents
- Montgomery County Memorial Library System · Conroe · 705,126 residents
- El Paso Public Library · El Paso · 678,958 residents